Two Paths, One Future
by Kanna37
Summary: Natsu's feelings about his best friend's 'death' come out a few weeks after it all happens, and stuns - and pleases - the Celestial Mage. Canon up to that arc, then A/R. Just a bit of NaLu fluff, originally written for my daughter. Rated for a tiny bit of 'language'.


**Two Paths... One Future**

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Fairy Tail.

~NaLu~

"I hadn't ever considered a future without you in it."

Lucy's eyes widened with shock for a moment at what had just slipped out of her best friend's mouth. It was totally, completely unexpected. She was literally blindsided.

Natsu had shown up at her apartment that morning, poked and prodded until she'd gotten out of bed, then he'd paced agitatedly around the space until she'd readied herself for the day. After that he'd practically kidnapped her, dragging her away from Magnolia and into the forest, heading straight for his house. She'd grimaced as she'd looked around when he'd pulled her through the door – the place was a disaster, exactly like it usually was, even after all her cleaning of it. In fact, she'd just been about to comment on that, but was never given the chance. Her idiot best friend simply kicked a bunch of stuff out of the way and plopped her down on his excuse for a couch with a firmness that had really surprised her, before doing the same himself.

And then he'd surprised her even more with his choice of subject.

It had already been a few weeks since the Grand Magic Games, the dragons, and her – sort of - death. Admittedly, she was still haunted by what had happened to her future self. Or at least that future's self. Good thing _that_ future had been averted. Hopefully, their future now would last a lot longer and be a great deal better for all of them than it had been in that other timeline. But in the here and now...

… "What?" she finally blurted, her frazzled mind unable to think of anything else to say in that moment.

Natsu didn't even look at her. He remained tensely in his spot on the questionable piece of furniture, so close yet so far away, staring blankly at the wall. She was just about to demand he tell her what was going on when he spoke again.

"I don't really think about the future all that much," he began slowly. "I live in the present for the most part, and aside from setting goals for my fighting, possible missions, and lookin' for Igneel, I don't think much beyond that. But whenever I _did_ think about the future, you were always part of it. The biggest part. It never occurred to me that there could even _be_ a future without you." He sat forward suddenly, clasping his hands between his legs as his head dropped. "And then there you were, lying on the floor dying. I froze. I couldn't move, couldn't breathe, couldn't _believe._ Everything – life - just... stopped. I guess that's what you call horror," he tried to joke, though it fell flat since his voice trembled as he said it, and Lucy could hear his continuing upset quite clearly in it. "Never really felt anything like that before."

"W-why... why haven't you said anything?" she asked, shaking her head in confusion as she frowned. "I thought you were okay with what happened. You've been your usual self since then."

That got a reaction, though certainly not one Lucy was expecting. He reared back and stared at her with his mouth hanging open and what the girl would swear looked like _hurt_.

Her heart pounded at the expression, she couldn't deny it. "N-Natsu?" she quavered, reaching out a hand to him, then hesitating when the look he'd been giving her morphed to outrage.

"Okay with it? _Okay_ with it? _Are you crazy?!_ " he shouted suddenly, startling her into falling back as he lunged forward and actually pinned her to the couch, his hands grasping her shoulders. "How could you even think something stupid like that? There's no 'okay' with your death! Even if you saved yourself from that this time and it won't happen, I still ain't okay with it. You died! _Dammit!_ _There was a future where you died!_ " he howled, practically deafening her. Then his voice fell. He continued speaking, though his tone was low, lost, and sad now. Almost... defeated. "There was actually a future where I didn't have you anymore..."

Eyes wider than they'd ever been and heart in her throat, Lucy shook her head and tried to say something. _Anything._ But he didn't let her, talking right over her rather weak attempt.

"I... I couldn't do anything," he continued, his voice faltering at the memory. "You were taken from me, right before my very eyes, and I couldn't stop it."

By now the blonde had been reduced to tears. Her eyes had welled up the moment her shock at being practically pounced by the upset mage had worn off, and now she was openly crying.

"But we chose right, you know? I'm still here, and you are, and so is everyone else. We all fought _together_ to change that future and preserve a better one, and we won. You don't have to be sad, Natsu," she practically whimpered, unable to stand seeing her strong dragon-slayer reduced to this. He was a mess. "But why have you been hiding this? You really were acting like everything was fine. So why now do you bring me out here to talk about it and act like... this?" She condensed all her questions into one – the only important one. " _Why?_ "

Natsu slowly let go her shoulders, and cupped her face instead as he looked at her. His gaze sparked electric, trapping her soft brown eyes inside intense, glowing green. "I've been holding it in, trying to deal with it on my own. But I couldn't, no matter how hard I tried. The feelings it left me with just wouldn't let the matter rest. It kept making me relive it, over and over. Finally, I realized I couldn't even try to hide it anymore. I had to let it out before it killed me. So here you are." He paused, still staring into her eyes, then slowly said, "There can't be a future without Lucy. I can't let that happen. I _won't_."

"N-Natsu-"

"I don't need much. I've got Happy, and I can take care of myself well enough to go on with. You, though... you're a different matter altogether. I realized a while ago that as long as _you_ are by my side, I'll be happy anywhere, doing pretty much anything." His jaw clenched, and then his eyes fell to the side and went far away again. "And besides... it wasn't even just that you... she... died. I could see it. That Lucy had suffered terribly, and it had marked her, body, heart, and soul." His voice dropped, the tone low and upset. "I... I don't ever want to see you like that again. It hurt. It wasn't _Lucy_."

A muffled cry recaptured his attention and his gaze.

"It's the same for me, you know," she got out between sobs, "do you think I don't remember what she said? You... you were dead in that future, too! I can't _stand_ to remember that, but I can't just forget it, no matter how much I've tried." Her eyes fell, her cheeks turning pink at what she was about to give away. "That's no kind of future that I'd want either, one without you in it. You... you're everything. If I was never going to see you again... I wouldn't want to live in that kind of world."

"Then we won't. We won't let that happen." Natsu stared at her, his gaze focused and fierce, full of an inhuman determination – and just a hint of longing. "We must _always_ be together, Luce. You, me, and Happy. We belong that way, see? And-" a very slight blush touched his face and his eyes flickered away for just a moment before recapturing hers, "-I... I mean not just as Natsu Dragneel and Lucy Heartfilia, but as _Natsu and Lucy_. We're a pair and we go together, just like we always have from the first time we met."

She wasn't sure _how_ she knew exactly what he was talking about, because he was being a little vague, but she did. Pair... he meant _couple_. He wanted them to be together, as a romantic _twosome._ It was what she'd wanted for some time now, because he was right. They just fit together, and they had since the very beginning. He was her best friend, she adored him even with all the things that drove her nuts sometimes, and the bonds between them had only deepened and strengthened immeasurably through all the many terrible and wonderful things they'd been through. They'd saved and helped each other countless times already, and she had no doubts they'd keep doing so for the rest of their lives, because he was right...

They must always be together. They _would_ always be together.

A radiant smile creased her cheeks, lighting her still-drenched eyes with profound joy, and she threw her arms around the young man, hugging him to her tightly. "That sounds like the best kind of world, Natsu, and the only one I want. I accept."

Her glowing smile was met with a brilliant return grin from him, and then he lowered his face to hers and pressed their lips together, engaging her in this manner the way he did everything else – with no hesitation whatsoever.

Natsu Dragneel might take a while to make up his mind about certain things, but once he did, he never changed it or turned back from the course he'd set, so she knew she could count on a lifetime with her best friend...

And she suspected even more, because she had a feeling her future self and that Natsu were also together again in heaven, along with all their nakama.

What better fate could there be? Nothing, as far as she was concerned, and she finally felt at peace with what had happened. If even death couldn't truly separate them, then she knew she had nothing to fear.

They had been presented with two possible paths on the day that version of herself had died, but both of them led to _one_ future, and she was good with that.

~NaLu~

A/N: I'm an unapologetic Loke/Lucy shipper. But I do also enjoy Natsu/Lucy as a secondary pairing, and though I probably won't ever write them often, I do sometimes read a good NaLu fic. This particular one-shot was started all the way back in November, but I got about halfway through it and never finished. Today, I just needed a break from writing my LoLu A River Amongst the Stars... you know, something a little different. So I broke this one out and finished it, and now I present it to the readers. I hope everyone enjoys it for what it's worth!

Amber


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